Alternative Car Fuels Talk

• 27Oct

  Toyota eyes to roll out solid state lithium-ion battery by 2015-2020

  Toyota No Comments

  A Japanese newspaper recently reported that Toyota Motor Corp. together with High Energy Accelerator Research Organization Tokyo Institute of Technology came up with a prototype of a solid state lithium-ion battery and they are looking to improve it so it can be released to the market around 2015 thru 2020.

  The battery can also be produced onto a sheet form and can carry larger amount of electricity. The added capacity can be beneficial for electric vehicles and add up to their range per charging. Using them on Evs may mean 1,000 kilometers or so per single charge compared to today’s electric cars which can travel 200 kilometers or a bit more at most.

  The lithium-ion batteries that we have at the moment are using organic liquid electrolytes which require stricter safety precautions. Using them in a large scale set up means more complicated set up and very high cost. These issues can be addressed by using solid electrolytes. The use of solid electrolytes right now is hindered by their conductive properties.

  An article by Toyota appeared on the pages of Nature relating the development of Li10GeP2S12 which is a lithium superionic conductor with new 3D structural framework. The proponents of the project reported of the highest conductivity for a solid state electrolyte in room temperature even surpassing that of the liquid electrolyte.

  There are several advantages when using a solid state lithium-ion battery. Some of these are big potential, high conductivity, stability, safety since it is non-explosive, and easier fabrication.

  Tags: Battery, Lithium-Ion Battery, Toyota

• 19Aug

  Virginia Governor signs executive order for widespread use of alternative-fuel

  alternative fuel No Comments

  According to a press release issued by the state government of Virginia, an executive order was signed by Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell urging everyone to resort to using natural gas, alternative fuel and/or electrical vehicles. The news was deemed as bold and almost unexpected.

  The replacement of conventional vehicles with alternative fuel and/or electric vehicles will be done by the Virginia Office of Fleet Management Services whose office has been overlooking the operations of about 4,000 passenger vehicles. These 4,000 conventional vehicles are being uses by over 175 agencies and institutions across the state.

  According to the executive order, the state is adamant in pursuing cost-effective and practical options to pursue, promote, and encourage the usage of alternative-fuel and/or electric vehicles. Moreover, Governor McDonell expressed that the move to resort to unconventional vehicles will largely decrease the long-standing dependence on foreign oil.

  Relatively, the use of alternative-fuel/electric vehicles will create jobs in the Commonwealth and expand local businesses in the private sector. Lastly, this alternate fuel move will also give the Commonwealth the biggest chance to meet its goals.

  More and more cities/states are seeing the benefits and practical sense of using alternative-fuel/electric vehicles.

  Likewise, more and more car companies are participating in the assessment programs done in various cities all over the world to see how electric vehicles will par in everyday life. The use of such will also help in cleaning up the environment. It wouldn’t come as a surprise when one day, all of the public passenger vehicles will be powered with alternate fuel.

  Tags: alternative fuel, Natural Gas, Virginia

• 10Dec

  Plug-in rental: Hertz car line-up to include Volt, Leaf, i-Miev etc.

  Electric Vehicles, Hybrids No Comments

  Consumers who want to try driving green cars should check out the per hour rental program of Hertz called Connect by Hertz. The car rental company foresees the curiosity of the driving public on plug-in vehicles and has included in their line-up the Chevrolet Volt, Nissan Leaf, Tesla Roadster, Mitsubishi i-Miev, Coda Sedan and the Smart ED.

  The plug-in vehicles can be rented starting December 15 in New York. The rental scheme of the green vehicles will soon be rolled out to San Francisco, Texas, Washington DC, and London by next year. Hertz is also studying the possibilities of extending the services to different colleges and universities in N. America and may be even in China by the last quarter of 2011.

  The process of renting a plug-in vehicle with Hertz is pretty simple but the number of green cars available is quite limited. Hertz is limiting the services to members only. Those who are interested can sign up via the website of Hertz. There is a variable fee collected for the membership. Upon payment, the members will be asked to submit some information. The rental agency will contact the member for availability of the vehicles.

  Slots are expected to fill up quickly since Hertz will only have 1,000 vehicles by the end of 2011 with only 20 cars joining the program by midyear. Book asap if you want to try these green cars.

  Engineers have been working years to develop these kind of totally different motors and engines for both regular cars and electric cars, better motors than in second hand cars for sale. We're in the middle of a paradigm-shift in motoring, and we are so happy you guys are here on our blog checking it out with us!

  Tags: car rental, electric vehicle rental, green car news, green car rental, green cars, Hertz car rental, Hertz EV rental

• 01Dec

  Think Electric Car To Tour the Alps

  Eco-Energy, Electric Vehicles, Think No Comments

  If you are a US vacationer and planning to go to the Alps this year then it is going to be really easy and simple for you. You can take the benefit of the tie up between the Finland based Think Electric Car manufacturer and the eco-tourism pioneer Alpmobil. This is going to be one of the best ways to assure less of a carbon footprint on the Alps and make it a completely carbon free zone.

  The first trial that was a pilot was run through this month and it was successful. Seeing this the first phase of this project is going to have 60 Think City Eco friendly cars. These cars will be available to the tourist for hire for Euros 45 only per day. These are going to be stationed outside tourists hotels, and resorts. This will be marketed online by Alpmobil the company so that tourists can book these cars before they arrive at the Alps.

  There are several battery charging stopovers located all over the city so as to make it convenient for the tourists to go on to recharge them. This is an extremely fun and affordable way to travel around the Alps and at the same time ensures that you are able to use renewable electric source which is powered by hydroelectricity. If you are concerned about the planet then you will love this most unique and innovative of ways to travel around. This car, rightly called the City can travel as fast as up to 70 miles per hour. Once you have recharged it you will be able to travel 100 miles before you need to recharge it once more.

  Don't forget: every auto insurance agency in the US is now giving discounts to people driving safe, green cars. We can only stress you there's more advantages than just saving the planet, you're also saving your budget!

  Tags: Electric Cars, Electric Vehicles, Think

• 12Jun

  Green Vans: Environmentally Friendly Vans of the future

  Vans No Comments

  There is a pressing need to produce green vans, that is vans that are environmentally friendly, and there is currently a lot of work being done in this field. There are a number of competing technologies and right now nobody knows which is likely to be successful. However it is almost certainty that in the future we will be driving vans that are far better for the environment than are currently available.

  The most likely environmentally friendly van of the future is one that runs on a mixture of ethanol and petroleum. The goal is to have vehicles that run on a half and half mixture. Since ethanol doesn’t produce the same emissions as petroleum it will reduce the amount of carbon released into the environment. The biggest problem with this approach is getting enough ethanol. Ethanol is a biofuel and is produced from crops like corn. Given that we currently have trouble feeding all of the worlds people using food to fuel cars is not really a good solution. Especially given the massive amounts of ethanol that would be needed. In order to run every car on a mixture of half ethanol would require more crops than we currently produce in total. Ethanol is a short term way to reduce pollution but it isn’t really a long term solution, so when you’re considering a Van Lease, it’s not the best option!

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• 07Jun

  Canada launches biofuel project to use Algae

  Bio Fuels No Comments

  The Canadian government is allotting around C$5 million for a project that will study the large scale production of fuels from algae that grows in its province of Nova Scotia.

  The Minister for Science and Technology announced the funding during the launch of the project held at the Institute for Marine Biosciences of the National Research Council.

  Other organizations and industrial partners are also pouring financial support amounting to about C$1.2M plus some help in kind.

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  Tags: algae, algae biofuel, algae canada, alternative fuel, biofuel, biofuel canada, fuel from algae

• 29Apr

  Researchers Present the Optimization of CNG-Fueled Spark Injection Suitable for a Parallel Hybrid Powertrain

  Hybrids, Natural Gas No Comments

  During the recent 2010 SAE World Congress, researchers presented a paper on the optimization of a natural-gas engine for a parallel hybrid powertrain. According to the study, this is possible by using an oversized turbocharger with and active waste gate control and an EGR. The study was made by the University of Strutgard’s Institute of Internal Combustion Engines and Automotive Engineering.

  Moves to optimize the CNG-fueled spark injection for the parallel hybrid powertrain can be traced back to the year 2006. During the latter part of the year, IVK, FKFS, Robert Bosch, and Opel were already collaborating on a natural gas hybrid vehicle project. The project was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology.

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  Tags: CNG, Hybrid, Natural Gas, Opel

• 31Jan

  Electric Supercharger helps gas engine have diesel efficiency

  Engine, Supercharger No Comments

  If you are following developments in the auto industry, you are not new to electric and hybrid vehicles being developed by car makers all over the globe. These vehicles make use of electric motors alone or in combination with a typical combustion engine to propel the car on the road.

  Controlled Power Technologies, a company in the United Kingdom was able to find a way to harness electricity and use it to run a supercharger that can help improve the performance of combustion engines and reduce their carbon dioxide emissions.

  CPT was able to build VTES or Variable Torque Enhanced Systems. This is the electrically run supercharger which is an enhancement of conventional superchargers that uses belts connected to the crankshaft of the vehicle’s engine to save fuel during heavier power demands. They were able to demonstrate that the VTES reduces the emission of the combustion engine and make it as efficient as diesel engines.

  CPT collaborated with a German company that develops vehicle power trains. They paired the turbocharger with a demo unit of the Volkswagen Passat and were able to plot impressive results. A standard VW Passat with the same configuration gives off 194g/km of carbon dioxide while the one which used the electric supercharger recorded 159 g/km.

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  Tags: Controlled Power Technologies, CPT, Engine, Supercharger

• 27Sep

  Electric Vehicle Packaging: Batteries Sold Separately?

  Electric Vehicles No Comments

  A study by University of California in Berkeley reveals that 64% of the chunk of electric vehicle sales in the near future will have the vehicle and the batteries being sold separately. The car and the battery that it will need will be treated as stand alone items.

  The proponents of the research see a direct correlation between consumer acceptance of electric vehicle technology and batteries being sold separately.

  At first look, consumer may be hesitant on buying a $15,000 battery pack with their vehicles. They might be thinking that the battery technology is not yet proven and it may have issues on longevity and durability. EV owners may also think that the car they purchased may not fit their need in the long run and will be a bit reluctant on getting the battery as part of the total cost.

  Car manufacturers looked into the study and are following what it suggests. Nissan is not yet decided if it will include the battery with their LEAF and considers leasing the battery as another product. Other major car makers have long decided that leasing the battery is the right way to go.

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  Tags: Battery, Electric Cars, Research

• 11Jul

  Coca-cola Enterprises More than Doubles Hybrid Delivery Fleet

  Coca-Cola Enterprises, Electric Vehicles, Hybrids, Shell No Comments

  Carbonated drink giant, Coca-cola Enterprises (CCE), has recently announced that they are set to added more than double of their present hybrid electric delivery trucks. The company is reported to hold a 142 trucks. With the addition of 185 new hybrids, the CCE is now holds the larget hybrid fleet in the whole of North America.

  Adding to the upgrading of their vehicles, CCE also said that they now have a heavier duty hybrid tractor. The said vehicle is aimed at supporting a 55,000 lbs gross vehicle combination weight. The said innovation is a welcome development for the company’s 33,000 lbs gross vehicle weight.

  CCE’s newest truck is designed with a hybrid powertrain for heavier loads. The new hybrid tractor is also in line with CCE’s campaign toward less energy consumption. The new truck is said to consume 305%less fuel that that of its old counterparts. CCE officials also said that the truck is said to produce 30% less of their old hybrid truck’s emissions.

  The popular beverage company is not entirely new to the hybrid campaign. CCE has, in fact, started their research for hybrid trucks since 2001. The company has partnered with their suppliers in the search for hybrid electric trucks.

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  Tags: Coca-Cola Enterprises, Hybrid Cars

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